International conference on construction engineering and project management (국제학술발표논문집)

  • 2024.07a
  • /
  • Pages.1027-1034
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  • 2024
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  • 2508-9048(eISSN)
Korea Institute of Construction Engineering and Management (한국건설관리학회)
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Applications, Challenges, and Future Research Directions for Passive Exoskeletons in the Construction Industry: A Critical Review

  • Masood KHAN (Department of Building and Real Estate, Faculty of Construction and Environment, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University) ;
  • Maxwell Fordjour ANTWI-AFARI (Department of Civil Engineering, College of Engineering and Physical Sciences, Aston University) ;
  • JoonOh SEO (Department of Building and Real Estate, Faculty of Construction and Environment, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University) ;
  • Shahnawaz ANWER (Department of Building and Real Estate, Faculty of Construction and Environment, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University) ;
  • Kelvin HEUNG (Department of Building and Real Estate, Faculty of Construction and Environment, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University)
  • Published : 2024.07.29
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Abstract

Much labour is required in the labour-intensive construction sector for workers to do physically taxing jobs like plastering, paving, surfacing, material lifting, hauling, scaffolding, etc. Passive exoskeletons have been advocated and examined in previous studies to reduce physical demands, improve work efficiency, and prevent work-related musculoskeletal disorders in construction workers. This review study examined previous studies performed on passive exoskeletons in construction or other occupational domains with the aim of finding the working principles and design requirements of the passive exoskeletons, their applicability and usability in occupational settings, and the potential challenges in their adoption, thereby finding future research directions that can overcome those challenges. Three working principles were identified: muscle assistance, joint load reduction, and maintaining proper posture. The design requirements to achieve one or more of these working principles may have a few undesired effects on the usability of the passive exoskeletons, like discomfort, unnecessary weight of the passive exoskeleton, difficulty in operation, restricted range of motion of the joints supported, and the unaffordability of these exoskeletons by the workers. Passive exoskeletons were reported to have a range of positive effects, like reducing muscle effort and improving the endurance of the workers. The study concluded that there needs to be sufficient research on real construction workers in a real construction environment to convince the workers and managers to accept passive exoskeletons. To improve the usability of passive exoskeletons, fundamental changes in design are needed through further research so that the exoskeleton can support workers in multitasking rather than a single function. They also need to become more affordable, and the other undesired negative effects of passive exoskeletons should also be addressed.

Keywords

Acknowledgement

This research study was supported by the BRE Research Incentive Scheme (P0046575) from Hong Kong Polytechnic University.

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